Full Fat, Full Flavor

"I could never do that diet. I like sweets too much." I can't tell you how many times I have heard that or a similar sentiment when people notice I am not eating a sugary dessert or bread. I usually say something about how it was hard at first, but that I got used to it. What I really want to say is that I am not on a diet. I don't believe in dieting, and have never been on a diet (well, except for Whole30, which was an elimination diet, but I don't think that counts). Dieting means restriction and deprivation, but there's none of that when eating low carb high fat. You see, diet technically means a way of eating. Consider for example a gluten-free diet. Would you say that someone who has eliminated gluten due to Celiac Disease is on a diet? Unfortunately, the weight-loss industry has taken that word and used it to mean a temporary, drastically restrictive way to eat to lose weight. I have changed my diet to be more healthy, but I am not "on a diet" ...

I read The Case Against Sugar  by Gary Taubes this past December and it probably gave me the best motivation for continuing to avoid sugar out of any book I have read on the subject. In the past, I would go off sugar for a 30-day challenge and then eat all the treats when I was done. Now that I know that there are legitimate health reasons to avoid sugar, thanks to Taubes' book, it has become much easier to say no. I know this is a tricky subject. People don't want to give up sugar. I've even seen articles arguing that sugar is a necessary part of a healthy diet, which is quite untrue. A lot of people, myself included, have a tendency to view sugary foods as treats that we don't want to miss out on. However, once I learned the science behind how our bodies handle (or do not handle) sugar, I learned to view it as poison. That may sound strong, but when you read this book, you will see just how bad sugar is for our health. If food is fuel, and I believe it is, why would...